


Her Smile Was the North Sky

by swashbuckling_pen



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: AU, F/F, Korrasami - Freeform, Minor Korra/Mako, Soul search, but Korra is not the Avatar...yet, falling in love with your bestfriend, semi-modern au, with bending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2018-06-09
Packaged: 2019-05-19 23:42:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14883500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swashbuckling_pen/pseuds/swashbuckling_pen
Summary: Sometimes the person you are looking for is right before your eyes.AKAKorra is a dense boulder mountain rock that needs a little crackin.





	Her Smile Was the North Sky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Writerleft](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Writerleft/gifts).



Asami watched, mesmerized, as dew drops peeled away from a lotus leaf. The orbs of liquid caught the dazzle of the late noon sun as they drifted towards Korra.

The two women were seated on a bamboo straw mat, the only dry refuge in the damp soil that covered the swamp. A half-assembled tent and two haversacks served as the women’s backrest.

“It feels like air rushing in, y’know? You breathe in, and it just...comes to you.” Korra whispered as she made the dew drops dance, hovering like winking fairy lights above her finger tips. “Tenzin said a fully realized Avatar can control all the elements. But apparently I need to meet my past lives here first, so I can restore my connection to the Avatar Spirit.”

“Wow. I knew there was something weird about you when I first met you.” Asami tilted her head to the side, quietly enjoying the way Korra’s features were sculpted into a look of absolute concentration. A slow smile crept up on her lips as she dipped her hand into the shallow stream beside them, and flicked the murky water towards Korra. 

“Hey!” Korra looked in disbelief at her best friend, the water that now soaked her cotton shirt was ice cold. Baby blue eyes narrowed at the barely concealed mirth of the engineer. She scooped water from the stream and shot them towards Asami, who merely evaded getting drenched with a casual flip of her hair.

“You’re the one talk.” Korra said, glaring at the pristine condition of Asami’s maroon biker jacket and purple tank top. “Does Hiroshi know his precious prissy daughter is a tasmanian devil with a motor oil fetish? Between the two of us, you’re the weird one.”

“Korra…” Asami exhaled the name slowly in mock exasperation. “You  _ do _ know that tasmanian devils aren’t fast, right? Looney Tunes are not exactly wildlife documentaries.”

“Bah. Who would you rather listen to, Asami? Some creature feature narrated by an old man with a pompous accent? Or the woman who can magically control the elements?” Korra waggled her brows and nonchalantly folded her arms behind her back, making the contours of her toned biceps stand out.

Asami huffed, causing locks of ebony hair to fly off her face. She tore her eyes away from the other woman as if she was burned by the sight. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, Miss Avatar. You haven’t controlled the elements yet.”

“But you believe me, right?”

Something in Korra’s voice made Asami swing her gaze back to the watertribe woman who was peering intently at the depths of the murky marsh. 

“You believe I’m the Avatar?” Korra posed the question lightly, but the furrow of her brows betrayed the weight of her words.

Korra felt soft, featherlight fingers brush her shoulders and she looked up to see sunlight refracting into emerald eyes.

“Of course I believe you, Korra. That’s why I’m here...with you.”

Asami thought she had already fortified her immunity after years of exposure to Korra’s smile. But this, this fierce joy with a wisp of something tender tracing the curve of Korra’s lips? 

No fortress could withstand the crashing meteorite impact of that smile.

Asami found herself inching towards the warmth radiating from Korra. She wasn’t even aware that their faces were close, if not for the sight of incandescent blues suddenly widening in panic.

"Asami?" Korra rested a palm on Asami's shoulder, halting any further movement.

As if waking up from a daze, Asami inwardly shook herself and withdrew.

_ How could she let herself forget? _

“C’mon, let’s go find your past lives.” Asami stood quickly and dusted off her jeans. The apologetic smile that turned the corners of her lips felt brittle on her face.

 

* * *

 

“So... how many days?” Mako said as he leaned against the door jamb of their shared bedroom. 

“Not sure…” Korra tipped the contents of a drawer unto the bed, stuffing items of clothes in a haversack. “I won't be back until I learn something from my past lives.”

“And what if you  _ don’t  _ meet your past lives?”

Korra shut her eyes and counted to ten. She inhaled deeply before saying, “Then I’ll go to another sacred Avatar place on Tenzin’s list until I do.”

The watertribe woman’s shoulders tensed as she focused all her attention on packing.

Mako sighed and strode into the room. He rested his large hands on each of Korra’s biceps. The watertribe woman momentarily fought the sudden urge to shrug him off.

“I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just... being realistic and I don’t want you to get disappointed.” Mako rubbed the rigid flesh knotted on Korra’s shoulders, stepping closer into her personal space. “Bending has been gone for almost a hundred years. And the Avatar hasn’t been reincarnated for a long time...” 

“Well, just because something is gone doesn’t mean it will never come back.” Korra muttered as she closed the zippers of her bag with finality. She steeled herself before turning to face her boyfriend. “I’ve got a feeling about this, Mako. Like I am headed somewhere I am finally supposed to be.”

“Korra...we don’t have all the facts yet. Don’t you think you’re rushing into this?” Mako cupped Korra’s chin so that the watertribe woman can’t miss the concern etched on his face. “We are in our final year at the Republic Police Academy. Why not wait till graduation?” 

“Mako, this is important to me...” Korra sighed as she curled her fingers around his wrist. She leaned towards him, searching for something to hold onto in his gaze. “You _ do _ believe that there’s a chance I might be the Avatar, right?”

The silence stretched a beat too long.

“Of course, I do.”

 

* * *

 

Korra sat up with a start.

She blearily took in her surroundings. Her head had been resting on the smooth surface of a boulder. Her pants and boots were covered by thick moss from the damp ground. Giant vines crawled in a canopy overhead, splintering the glow of the sunset on shallow water.

There, caught in one of the sunbeams, was a glowing floating creature. It had a round face, rotund body with large leaves as ears.

“Are you lost?” The creature chirped, in a high, child-like voice.

“What... what are you?” Korra rubbed her eyes and when she blinked them open, the creature was still there.

“I’m a light spirit! But the question is, who are you?” The spirit flapped its leaf-ears and flew nearer towards Korra.

“I’m Korra.” The watertribe woman peered closely at the spirit which seemed to be translucent and solid at the same time. She reached out and asked, “May I?”

The light spirit nodded. When Korra’s hand landed gently on the spirit’s sloping head, it grinned. its shiny eyes shrank into happy tiny slits. 

Korra marvelled at the warmth emanating from the points where she touched the spirit. It was like touching a just-toasted marshmallow.

“Are you lost, Korra?” 

“A little...my teacher, Tenzin, said that the swamp will help me talk to my past lives. That once I meet them, they will help me connect with the Avatar spirit.”

The spirit bobbed its tiny head. “Is that what you want, Korra?”

“Yes.” Korra found herself saying with certainty. “I feel the world has spun out of balance for so long...and I can feel the earth calling me to do something.”

“Well, if you are not balanced within, it will be hard for the spirit of balance to come back to you.”

“What do you mean?”

The spirit flew again and reached out a pudgy limb to tap on Korra’s forehead.

“Your heart is confused. You need to talk to it more,” the spirit peered at her as if peeking into her soul. “Once your heart is clear, the swamp will help you find your way.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Korra found Asami back at their camp. The engineer was striking pieces of stone together over a bunch of dry driftwood.

 

“You know, the lighter is right over there.” Korra said in greeting.

Cool emerald eyes flicked at her, and Korra got a distinct impression that the engineer was analyzing her mood.

“Well where’s the fun in that?” Asami said with a quirk of a smile. “Once you’ve mastered firebending, this will be over too soon.”

“And you won’t be able to show off your fancy wild survival skills.” Korra sat beside her friend and watched as Asami continued striking a yuan coin against the sharp edge of a dark stone.

Sparks suddenly flew from the contact. Korra’s mouth hung open as the flecks of flame caught on the thinnest part of the branches. Asami swiftly protected it with her hands and gently blew. The smoke rose slowly as the flame consumed and licked every twig, growing into a blazing fire. It illuminated the dark corner of their swamp in a soft mellow glow.

“That’s kind of magical,” Korra whispered as Asami finally sat back, wiping the beads of sweat on her face with the back of her hand. Korra couldn't help but notice how the firelight highlighted the delicate features of Asami's face.

“Nah, it’s just the high pressure against the steel surface that makes it ignite,” Asami shrugged, the flames dancing merrily in those emerald eyes. “But I agree, it is sort of magical.”

The two friends grinned at each other, dissipating the tension that hung over them earlier.

“So...have you seen any of your past lives lately?”

“No...but I met a friendly neighborhood spirit who gave me some advice.” Korra wrapped her arms around her knees and stared at the fire. “They said that I need to know what I want first, before the swamp can help me find my way.”

“Hmm…” Asami bit her lip thoughtfully. She poked the burning twigs with a long stick to make the fire burn evenly. “So… it’s kinda like a compass? It needs to know where North is first, before it can point you to the right direction?”

Korra couldn’t help but look fondly at her friend who has a different way of looking at things from her, but in a way it helps clear the muddle. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Okay,” Asami squared her shoulders and turned towards Korra. She was wearing an expression on what Korra would call the ‘Business Asami’ expression, all bright eyes and alert seriousness. “So tell me, Korra. What is your true north? What do you truly want in life?”

“Seriously?” Korra chuckled. “You want me to answer that while you are wearing your Corporate Dork Face?”

Asami poked a stick at Korra’s side, making the other girl yelp. “Just answer the question, Miss Watertribe.”

Korra bit back a smile and turned fully to face the engineer. She heaved a sigh as she turned the question again and again in her head.

“Well...I do really want to become the Avatar the world needs…”

Asami smiled encouragingly, patiently waiting for Korra to continue.

“I want to travel the world. Learn from all the nations...to meet mentors other than Tenzin. I want to meet people who have not forgotten the old ways, not just bending, but lost cultures, our roots. I want to know how we can go back to caring for each other’s tribes…”

The sound of crackling fire and the cozy warmth that suffused her made Korra slowly shut her eyes.

_I want a partner who cares for me. Believes in me._

_Someone who makes me happy, and I hope to make them happy, too._

 

* * *

 

 

 

Amber eyes flickered with a quiet smile.

A large, warm hand wrapped around hers.

Fingers interlaced, they ran through the woods.

Pulling each other forward.

But when she looked back, an inky darkness swirled. 

And her hand was empty.

 

Her feet took off. 

The white sky fell and blanketed her.

She was a streak, a tiny speck in a vast canvas. 

A solitary footprint swallowed by a snowy landscape.

 

A sense of loss stole her voice.

Tears pricked the corners of her eyes.

 

A featherlight hand touched her shoulder.

Eyes of meadow and emerald sunlight.

Silk black tendrils, graceful as a wing.

A hand slipped through the empty spaces in hers, 

And their feet left the ground.

 

Their laughter rippled back and forth

From one shoreline to the other.

Her smile was a sky she soared in.

A horizon of earth jade meeting the fire of her blue.

There, nestled on the slope of her shoulder.

A north that never faltered.  Always waiting. Always true.

* * *

 

 

“Korra?” Asami tentatively touched her friend, lightly nudging her arm. 

Korra slowly opened her eyes, as if not wanting to leave her dream just yet.  But when she saw the engineer’s eyes looking in concern, she became fully awake.

“Hey, Korra. Are you still with me?”

Korra felt a burst of joy singing in her chest. 

She couldn’t stop the smile that escaped her lips. 

“Not yet. But I will be.”

 

 

 

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for giving this a read.  
> and thank you to the people who keep the this ship sailing after...four years gosh where did the time go?  
> a special thanks to Writerleft @threehoursfromtroy who always had an encouraging word for those who need it, especially in this fandom. She painstakingly comments/give notice to fan art, fan fic and all the efforts each creator took time to bring to life. Nothing goes unnoticed. And here, I hope she knows she is noticed.  
> We see you too, Shannon. May your recovery be swift. And fun!
> 
> And shout out to @thewillowtree3.


End file.
